Reborn as Sakura and Hinata: Lost in the Wind

Sakura's Fight

Ino and I stared terrified at each other from across the arena. My knuckles were white from gripping my crutches. Ino wrung her hands.

"Well," I shouted defiantly, "Come at me then!"

Ino flinched.

"COME ON THEN!" I screamed, beginning to hobble over.

Ino let out a sob and ran forward.

"I don't want to do this!" She cried as she swung at me. I clunkily dodged before taking a crutch and swinging it at her.

"I don't want to either!" I cried back as she blocked me with her arm. She made a couple more swings at me that I barely escaped.

"You're injured! I don't want to hurt you!" Ino sobbed as she grabbed one of my crutches, "I love you dammit!"

"I love you too!" I shot back as we played tug of war with my crutch, "Do you think I want to hurt you? No! I don't!"

"Arg! This is all so messed up!" Ino shrieked as she pulled my crutch from me.

"Hey!" I swiped at her, "give that back!"

"Sakura!" Ino was a bawling mess at this point, "how can I fight you like this?"
"With everything you've got!" I yelled, also a teary mess.

I launched myself forward and tackled Ino to the ground, ignoring the horrific pain in my legs. We grappled on the floor as Ino desperately tried to push me off her. I punched at her wildly, not really placing any direction behind my swings.

Ino likewise was blindly blocking and hitting me. That was until she finally kicked me off. She scrambled back and stood up. I grabbed my crutches and stood up much less gracefully.

"Do your freaking 'mind transfer' thing!" I demanded.

"I can't do that to you!" Ino retorted, "It's not fair!"

"Life isn't fair, Ino!" I screamed, "Hinata lost her fucking eye! My legs were shattered! If you can't accept that then you aren't ready to be a Chunin!"

There was a sudden silence after that. It felt as if the air had frozen. We both stared at each other, heavily breathing, bruised.

Ino walked up to me and slapped me. There was a gasp from the crowd. I glared at her; she glared at me.

"You just slapped a cripple." I said, betrayed.

"But you just said-"

"BOOOO!!!" Naruto was standing at the railing, hands cupped around his mouth, booing, "she hit a cripple!"

Immediately some of the crowd began joining in. Ino looked around confused.

"But-!"

I hit her over the head with my crutches.

"Ow! Sakura-!"

I repeatedly began smacking her with my crutches. She began to step back so I had to stop my assault to hobble forward a little.

"Fight me like a man!" I shouted.

"But I'm-"

"Fight me like a woMAN!" I amended.

"You can't play the cripple card then!?"

"Like HELL I can't! I'm a cripple!"

We continued a strange cycle of me smacking Ino with my crutches, Ino retreating, me following her, her hitting me, me playing the cripple card.

"Enough, Sakura!" Ino finally shouted, completely exasperated, "we can't keep doing this! I can't keep doing this!"

"Well, I'm not giving up!"

I saw something strange go through Ino's expression before she let out a breath.

I didn't like where this was going.

As soon as she started to raise her hand I launched at her.

"NO!" I tackled her to the ground again.

"What are you doing!?"

"You can't forfeit!"

"Like hell I can't!"
"But WHY!?"

Ino gently pushed me off her and sat up, taking my face in her hands.

"Sakura, becoming a chunin means more to you than it does to me... and I value your happiness more than becoming a chunin."

"Ino... I don't want you to-"

"Sakura, I already lost your friendship once... hell, I almost lost you for real in the last trial. You've given me so much... and I want to give you this opportunity. And that is why I forfeit this match."

I was so furious and so touched at the same time. The announcer announced the results, obviously very confused. We sat there on the floor until the paramedics came out to take me to the hospital to finally get my fucking legs fixed.

"I hope you get better." Ino said.

"Me too. Watch Hina for me, please."

"I will." she promised as she walked toward the balcony.

I was carried out of the arena hearing the applause of my friends.